News Details

Democrats ram through tax hike without protections for middle class

5/1/2019

Illinois Senate Democrats muscled through a series of tax hike bills on party-line votes, endangering economic growth while offering no protections for middle-income families, according to State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington).

“This graduated tax scheme offers no protections whatsoever for middle-income families, and we’ve already seen the proposed rates changing,” said Barickman. “People are rightly concerned that this plan would likely end up being just the first in a series of tax hikes.”

The graduated tax plan has been a major focus for new Gov. JB Pritzker since he first began campaigning. The plan involves not only a series of rate brackets which charge people higher and higher rates as their income increases, but also requires a change to the Illinois Constitution. Critics have noted that the plan offers no guarantees whatsoever for taxpayers on the rate structure, and that the rates could change again before the system even goes into effect.

Possible protections, including Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 12 which would increase the number of votes required to raise taxes, have so far been completely ignored by sponsors of the graduated tax plan.

“This scheme does not to stop the problem of out-of-control spending but simply takes more money from Illinois families,” said Barickman. “We can’t afford another tax hike that will kill jobs and push families out of Illinois, even more so when the plan will likely lead to even tax more hikes in the future.”